In a remarkable testament to its reliability and durability, the OMEGA Speedmaster watch has emerged as the sole qualifying timepiece following NASA’s rigorous testing. Jim Ragan, a veteran NASA employee with an impressive 36 and a half years of service, revealed the remarkable journey behind the selection of this iconic watch.
Ragan’s initial mission was to find a wrist-worn watch that met NASA’s stringent requirements for certification. A critical stipulation was that any hardware used on the vehicles had to pass a series of demanding tests. Four watch brands submitted their timepieces, but Ragan quickly eliminated one due to its inability to function as a capable wrist-worn device.
The testing phase commenced with a battery of ten different environments designed to push the watches to their limits. Each timepiece had to successfully navigate all ten tests; a failure in just one would result in disqualification. Surprisingly, two of the watches were eliminated after the initial thermal vacuum test, leaving only the OMEGA Speedmaster in the running.
The OMEGA Speedmaster’s ability to withstand the extreme conditions meant for vehicle-mounted hardware came as a pleasant surprise to Ragan. Although the primary purpose of the watch was to serve as a backup, it played a crucial role in situations where astronauts lost communication with the ground or experienced malfunctions with their digital timers. The OMEGA watch served as their sole means of tracking time while on the lunar surface.
Ragan’s dedication to ensuring the watch’s impeccable performance led him to service the timepieces more frequently than necessary. This meticulousness proved invaluable during the Apollo 13 mission. Ragan offered the OMEGA Speedmaster, along with two other watches, to the astronauts for testing. Unaware of Ragan’s exhaustive evaluation, the astronauts independently selected the OMEGA Speedmaster as their preferred timekeeping companion.
The successful partnership between OMEGA and NASA extends far beyond Apollo 13. OMEGA has been the sole contractor supplying hardware to NASA since the Gemini days, through the Shuttle and Space Station eras. The OMEGA Speedmaster’s enduring reputation and impeccable track record have cemented its status as a trusted companion to NASA astronauts.
As NASA continues to explore the depths of space, the OMEGA Speedmaster stands as a symbol of reliability, endurance, and the indomitable human spirit.
Source: Omega
